Back in Time : Akdha FF

swetiii

@swetiii

Sparkler

31

+ 5

Posted: 9 years ago

#161

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1

Reply

Quote

swetiii

@swetiii

Sparkler

31

+ 5

Posted: 9 years ago

#162

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update

1

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Quote

Samara Akter

@Agents

Beginner

3

Posted: 9 years ago

#163

Chapter : 12

'You've got to be kidding me,' was the first thought that crossed Sam's mind.

'Everything was going so well,' was the second.

And, 'Dammit' was the third.

All these thoughts were completely justified. When walking to the courtroom with Jodha Begum, she had convinced herself that everything would be okay. She just had force a smile and sit through it.

Jodha Begum had separated from her a while before arriving to the court. When she arrived at the court, everyone else was already there. She forced her lips upwards and put her 'Ice Queen' mask on. The people would see what they wanted to see. A newlywed bride greeting her new friends and family. She would show them that. She greeted everyone with a smile and hand folded in front of her as was the custom of her religion. It took her little time to reach the throne.

After that, it was a tedious process that consisted of Shahenshah's half truths and sugar coated words. And the Moulabi prayed for the progress of Mughal Dynasty. 'At least one of us will have their prayers answered.' Sam thought dryly.

When the sweets came, she could tell from only the smell that it was laddoos. Her favourite. Last time she ate laddoos, it was on her mother's anniversary, three months ago, in her time. Ramdev Uncle, the Indian cook at her house, had made them for her to cheer her up. He had been working there for almost 14 years. He knew all her choices for all her moods. She smiled in remembrance. Those were good times.

Her reminiscences were broken when the thaali of sweets was extended towards them. Her enthusiasm was dampened when the Moulabi said that they had to feed each other. She was further aggravated when he heard the bas***d chuckle.

He threw him a dirty look. When he took a laddoo, she sighed. 'Might as well get this over with.' She took the laddoo from his hands and fed it to him, while looking at him right in the eyes. 'I am not so easily cowed.' She thought furiously. And then he took the laddoo from her hands and placed it in front of her mouth. She ate the laddoo quietly, but not before giving a sarcastic smile.

After that was over with, the maid was ready to leave. But Sam couldn't resist taking a laddoo for herself. She almost ate the whole laddoo from two bites when she heard a chuckle. She mentally facepalmed when she realized that her antics were witnessed by the whole court.

"What? I love laddoos." She justified herself, after finishing her laddoo. That elicited another chuckle from the crowd, this one more fond. She looked down sheepishly and blushed but then threw dirty look at Shahenshah when he chuckled again.

The laughs died down soon enough. And then the Moulabi announced the start of celebration. Say what you will about the Mughals, they did know how to celebrate. Varieties of artists, singers, dancers, actors and banjaraas performed with songs of praises, beauty of the new Begum, bravery of Shahenshah and their beautiful relationship.

'Beautiful relationship, my ass.' Was her thought to that, along with a mental middle finger. But, as far as parties went, this was a pretty good one. She was quite surprised to find that she actually enjoyed the spectacle. It was like nothing she had ever seen. She was used to seeing everything with flashes and gorgeous lightings and setups. These were simple yet so beautiful. She loved it. Now that the entertainment was done, she could go after a while. All in all, everything was going well.

Yes, everything was going very well. Until her 'husband' decided ruin everything. Sam glared daggers at him. 'He finally decided to play his hand,' she thought, 'a dirty hand at that.' It didn't take long for her to realize what his game was.

He knew she didn't grow up with a royal family. And the Princess were taught various crafts, one of them being singing. And not just any song. Songs of devotion, victory, bravery and history. The songs about the simple things in life - emotional, romantic, comedy, tragedy - the songs from her time - those kinds of songs didn't exist here.

She couldn't sing the songs that a Princess could sing, that a Queen would sing. And Shahenshah knew that. The f**king bas***d. She wanted nothing more to tear him apart. But instead she clenched her fist and focused on her breathing. Just like Sensei taught her. 'Focus your breathing, focus your mind, focus your emotions. Your emotions don't control you. You control them.' God, she missed Sensei. She could really really use some guidance right now.

Sam mentally counted backwards from ten, her special little technique. It worked and by the time she had finished counting, she had calmed herself enough to not stab anyone in sight. She looked up at the reason for her current headache and saw him smirking infuriatingly at her. Luckily, her little ritual had enough effect that she managed to keep her calm.

She opened her mouth to refuse. However, Shahenshah spoke first, "What? Are you afraid to sing in front of us?" His smirk grew as he continued, "Can you not sing, Begum? I promise we will not laugh if you cannot."

A challenge. It was not in the wording, but this was definitely a challenge. And of course, Sam couldn't back down from a challenge, especially not in front of all these people. Sam narrowed her eyes. 'Clever. Dirty, but clever nonetheless.'

She answered without hesitation. "Oh, I can sing. I am just not sure that what I sing is what you would usually hear in a courtroom."

Shahenshah opened his mouth, clearly to retort. But, someone else beat him to it. "But I want to hear you sing." A high pitched voice came from behind with curtains, where the women were sitting. She turned to see who had said that, only to be tackled by a bundle of 3 feet in height. It didn't take her long to realize that the bundle was a little boy. She was too surprised to do anything. As the boy wound his hands from around him, a regal woman walked towards her with an apologetic smile.

'I recognize her,' Sam thought. Sam did recognize her. The wife of late Bairam Khan, who was a father figure and mentor to Shahenshah. Sam married her to provide protection to her and her child. That was probably the single good thing he had done. Even now, she could see the respect in his eyes for that woman. She never thought him capable of such a thing. She could see that he would never do anything wrong with her.

Judging from the look on her face, this was her son. What was his name again? Rehan? Rohan? Rahim? That was it. Rahim. From what she'd heard, Shahenshah was quite fond of Rahim. Speaking of Shahenshah, Sam found her eyes meeting his, trying to gauge his reaction. All she saw was there was a knowing look in his eyes. So, he was behind this.

Sam could feel her temper rising as she looked at him in the eye. He stared right back. Before they could continue the silent battle, however, a voice interrupted them. "Apologies, Shahenshah." The voice was soft but regal like that of a royal woman. Sam turned to find Salima Begum standing in front of her with a small smile. "Begum Meera ..."

But this time Salima Begum was interrupted. "Sam." When the older woman looked at her with confused eyes, Sam elaborated, "I prefer to be called Sam, without the Begum." Salima Begum frowned and opened her mouth, most likely to protest.

But before she could say anything, Sam spoke again. "Please. I would appreciate if you grant me this wish. And as I told, Jodha Begum, the rhyming of 'Sam Begum' is absolutely ridiculous."

Salima Begum chuckled softly. And so did the rest of the court. "Very well ... Princess Sam." Sam gave a resigned sigh. It seemed the woman was adamant on calling her by a title. Still, it was better that Begum. She smiled and gave a nod. Just then, she felt a tug on the hem of her anchal. She looked down to see the boy looking up at her with a petulant pout.

"I want to hear you sing." The boy repeated. Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw Salima Begum about to speak, most probably to scold the little guy. Sam gave a slight shake of her head towards her and got up from her place on the throne. Kneeling down in front of the boy, she said, "But I am afraid you will not like what I sing."

The boy frowned. "Why?" He enquired.

Sam went with the truth. "Because I cannot sing what other Begums can."

"I do not care." The boy said. "Sing what you know. *Mein khan-e-khana hoon. Aap mere liye itti si gaana nahi gaa sakte?" The boy looked up with big eyes, not unlike that of a puppy. Well, there went her willpower. She could stare the Shahenshah, the man that killed so many people, down, but a pair of puppy dog eyes from a kid, and all her will came down crumbling.

But what would she sing? What would she sing that would not offended or confuse these people? She looked down at the boy. 'Aap mere liye itti si gaana nahi gaa sakte?' He had asked, so hopefully. She would hate to be the reason to turn that hope into disappointment ... itti si gaana ... but what 'itti si gaana' would she ... wait, 'itti si.' Well, she knew a song with that. It would be perfect.

"Well, if you insist." She got up and rounded up the boy in her arms. The mother in front of her extended her hands towards her boy. But Rahim shook her head violently. "No, I want to stay with Choti Maa*"

Sam turned startled eyes towards the child on her lap, at being addressed as a mother. It was the first time someone called her that. Of course it was. She was, at least in her own time, too young to be a mother. There was a warm feeling in her chest, like how the first ray of sunlight on a winter morning feels. She smiled and placed a quick kiss on the child's forehead. "This is for you, Rahim." She said and started the song she thought of, singing in that same melodious voice her mother used to sing to her, a small smile playing on her lips as she did so.

itti si hansi

itti si khushi

itta sa tukda chand ka

khwab ke tinkon se

chal banayen aashiyaan

itti si hansi

itti si khushi

itta sa tukda chand ka

khwab ke tinkon se

chal banayen aashiyaan

(just a little smile,

just a little happiness,

just a small piece of moon,

with the straws of dreams,

let's make a home.)

dabe dabe paaon se

aaye haul haule zindagi

hothon pe pappi chadha ke

hum taale laga ke chal

gumsum tarane chupke chupke gaayen

aadhi aadhi baat le

aaja dil ki ye zameen

thoda sa tera sa hoga

thoda mera bhi hoga apna ye aashiyaan

(with suppressed-silent steps

life comes in slowly,

putting a kiss on the lips,

and locking them, come,

let's sing the silent songs in a low voice..

let's divide this earth of heart

into two halves,

and it'll be a little yours, n a little mine too,

this dream home of ours.)

itti si hansi

itti si khushi

itta sa tukda chand ka

khwab ke tinkon se

chal banayen aashiyan

na ho chaar deewarein,

phir bhi jharokhe khule,

baadalon ke hothon pe

shaakhein hare pankhe jhalen

(there shouldn't be four walls,

but the windows still be open,

there should be clouds covering,

and the green branches be fanning us.)

na ho koi takraaren,

are masti thahaake chalein,

pyaar ke sikkon se mahine ka kharcha chale.

(there shouldn't be any fights,

fun and laughter goes on,

the month's rations come with the coins of love.)

dabe dabe paaon se

aaye haul haule zindagi

hothon pe pappi chadha ke

hum taale laga ke chal

gumsum tarane chupke chupke gaayen

aadhi aadhi beat le

aaja dil ki ye zameen

thoda sa tera sa hoga

thoda mera bhi hoga apna ye aashiyaan

itti si hansi

itti si khushi

itta sa tukda chand ka

khwab ke tinkon se

chal banayen ashiyaan

itti si hansi

itti si khushi

itta sa tukda chand ka

khwab ke tinkon se

chal banayen ashiyaan

As she finished the song on a low note, ending barely higher than a whisper, all she heard was silence. For a moment, she wondered why she couldn't see anything but an unending darkness. With a start, she realized that she must have closed her eyes sometime during the song. Just as she opened her eyes, a soft clapping sound resonated in the court. She looked down to see Rahim clapping and beaming up at her.

Soon, everyone in the court followed suit, clapping and praising, chanting 'mashallah, mashallah'*. Some doing it genuinely, others doing it because it would look bad on them if they didn't. As Sam looked at Shahenshah, she instantly knew that he belonged to the latter category. Sam let a smug smile spread across her face. The man thought he would humiliate her today, but ended up singing her praises. Oh the irony. Justice had been rightly served.

She was brought out of her internal victory dance by someone hugging her fiercely. She looked down to see Rahim with his arms around her. Man, that boy had a solid grip. Fortunately, the boy relinquished his grip soon after and smiled blindingly at her. "That was the best song I have ever heard."

Sam laughed. "Why, thank you, khan-e-khana. Now run along. Your mother is waiting for you." Salima Begum was sitting just behind the curtain, where she had gone after entrusting Rahim to her. With a soft smile, the mother raised her hand and beckoned her child forward. Rahim place a sloppy kiss on Sam's cheek before running to his mother.

After that, it was a short affair. Shahenshah said something or other to end the ceremony. Sam didn't pay attention until she heard 'dismissed'. Sam shook her head. He was even treating a celebration like a freaking war court. But she decided not to dwell on it. She sprung to her feet, anxious to leave the place, lest the .an bring out some more schemes. She walked out of the court with her maids trailing behind her, but not before bestowing Shahenshah with a two finger mocking salut and a wink when he was talking to his ministers, who had their backs to Sam, leaving only Shahenshah to see the silent mock. Sam's chuckle at the enraged look in his eyes could be heard throughout the corridor, even echoing in the garden.

-------------------------------------

A/N : God, I am so so sorry guys. There months. A lot of things happened during that time. My grandma died and my exams happened. So sorry for not updating for so long. From now on I will try to update at least once a month. And now for my non desi readers, some clarifications.

*1 - I am khan-e-khana(a title passed from his father, like lord.). Can't sing just a little song for me?

*2 - Literally translates to younger mother.

*3 - Mashallah is an Arabic phrase that expresses joy, appreciation, praise and thankfulness.

That's it for now. Enjoy.

(IF users, kindly ignore the translations. I did those for my non desi audiences at wattpad and now amy not in the mood to erase bc it makes my chapter look bigger. I am lazy like that.)

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